


The Battle for Their Future

by Ofopalite



Category: The Dark Crystal (1982), The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance (TV)
Genre: Angst, Eventual Smut, F/M, Forced Marriage, Original Character Death(s), Secret Relationship, Unplanned Pregnancy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-20
Updated: 2020-09-18
Packaged: 2021-03-05 23:40:21
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,279
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25983748
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ofopalite/pseuds/Ofopalite
Summary: Long ago before the arrival of the Fallen urSkeks and the rule of the Skeksis, Thra was a world that flourished under the guidance of the Great Crystal. During those day's of content thrived the unity of the Gelfling's who functioned under one clan with the enlightenment of Mother Aughra. But the Age of Innocence had befallen into treacherous hands bringing separation among the bipedal race- clans forged by differences, talents and traditions scattered across the earth to take root for the future. Seven clans succeeded into the new era while one was wiped from existence... or so the Skeksis thought. After trines upon trines of thriving in secrecy, the Lipris (LYE-pris) clan now faces the threat of old enemies after being visited by a group of gelfling's responsible for the chattering throughout Thra. And with their arrival comes more than just tribulation for love knows no bounds.
Relationships: Gurjin (Dark Crystal)/Original Female Character
Kudos: 4





	1. nulla.

“Seven Clans of Gelfling call Thra home, 

from the proud Vapra in the Mountain city of Ha’rar the most cultured of the Gelfling who rule over the seven Clans, 

to the fierce Stonewood who dwell in the endless forest renowned for their prowess in the battle and the gentle Grottan, 

who live deep beneath the ground in perfect harmony with all of Thra, 

forgotten by the world above “

∘₊✧──────✧₊∘ 

"For a thousand years they have ruled, 

yet now there are only ten. 

A dying race, 

ruled by a dying emperor, 

imprisoned within themselves in a dying land. 

Today, 

once more, 

they gather at the Crystal as the first sun climbs to its peak."


	2. I

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end."   
> -Seneca

The trek through the High Hills was nothing short of mundane. The mounds of earth now covered in a new springs growth felt warm under the bare feet of the gelfling who landed with a quiet thump, the small blades tickling her toes as she adjusted the woven basket on her hip. Off in the distance was an all-to-familiar dome perched on a cliff's edge, the light of the Three Brother's creating the faintest glint off the glass surface- Aughra's Observatory. The structure had sat dormant for many trines, the owner, Aughra herself was only present in physical form laying upon a propped platform facing the ever-moving solar system mobile. Her mind had long left the safe blanket of Thra and taken to travelling within the vast expanse of space where she sought more knowledge more understanding that she couldn't find here in their world nor through the eye of her telescope forever searching among the stars. Placing a hand on the moss covered rock to her left, the gelfling eased her weight down over the terrain the sediment beneath her feet a mix of worn stone and jagged gravel that made the descent both unpleasant and relieving. The sound of a low growl perked her attention once she reached the bottom of the hill, well not quite the bottom but more-so a flat outcrop that held more greenery and life overall. Wild flowers of faint pinks, vibrant blues and dull yellows grew in thick patches along the edge where the grass that grew met the rocky hillsides. The gelflings eyes flickered over to a small burrow within the ground where a sandy-brown colored furball poked its rotund body out, small serrated teeth bared menacingly as it yapped and snarled. She pursed her lips, eyes lidded as she watched the display- unfazed by the empty threat. "Have you finished? You are no more threatening then the flowers which grow around your den." The fizzgig barked once then twice till it rolled from the comfort of it's home to unleash the rest of it's howls. The gelfling huffed nudging the furball with her toes, she gained a bit of amusement seeing it throw a tantrum at her prodding. "Why don't you go do the rest of the Highlands a favor and roll down the hill?" Quick to flight, Fayra couldn't help but throw her head back as laughter bubbled from her lips watching the small creature hop and roll around in anger where she once stood. "Same time again tomorrow, old friend." She bid the fizzgig a cocky farewell before flying the rest of the way towards the observatory. 

The steps up to the dome were chipped and overgrown with vines, the small little leaves created a lovely cushion for each step the gelfling took. The wicker basket on her hip putting a pleasant weight in the crook of her elbow where the handle laid. The contents being lunch and a few activities to buy the time for herself and her podling companion- Mel, the great great grandson who had the unfortunate job of being the cleaning service for the observatory much like those of his family before him. She found it bemusing how the handy work remained within the bloodline but he seemed to not feel the same way. The hallway was dimly lit and at the end of it did the light blaze from the midday sun. Fayra could hear the faint humming of the male podling and wasn't expecting anything less when her eyes settled on his dancing figure, a duster in hand. She let out an amused huff as she sat down the basket on a recently dusted table, the books that scattered along it's surface were neatly stacked to the side. Hopefully Aughra wouldn't take note of their handling whenever she decided to come to. Mel tapped his foot to the beat of his thrumming as he shifted in front of a mirror, posing in the glory of his newly gifted jacket. His wife had nagged tooth and ear that his previous jacket would be nothing but a dishrag by the end of the current trine so she set to making him a new one in the time she could spare from their four childlings. He would be lying if he said he didn't look rather dashing in the fur lined coat with its breast pockets and lovely buttons. "Well I'd say that coat makes you look about 50 trines younger." Fayra teased causing the podling to jump on the spot before turning his attention to his companion. He commented in a flurry of gargles and sass as he surrendered his gaze back to his reflection, standing with his posture tall and shoulders squared. 

His duster placed at his hip where his hands rested. He winked, lifted a brow ridge, sent a smooch then brushed back the hair that stuck out from below his cap. The gelfing shook her head turning to the basket and it's content. Mel departed from the mirror and continued his way along the tables and scrolls and literature he had no clue of understanding, his duster flicking away that thin layer of gray that built up over the night. Then he stopped seeing no more surfaces to flutter away the dust, his dark eyes finally landing on the motionless figure laying upon the platform. Aughra wasn't quite a surface but then again she was still like one, not even her chest stuttered under the exhale and inhale of her breathing, if she even was. Mel neared the platform, overlooking her form which laid like a statue hands folded over her abdomen. The podling did note just a bit of dust building up over her skin but more-so in particular along her attire, the yellow and blue patterned dress appearing slightly dulled under the layers of grime. The podling cast a quick glance over to the gelfling to see she was preoccupied with whatever was in the basket knowing that if she was to see him swiping at the slumbering hermit then he would be tasting the handle end of the duster through his derriere something he would like to avoid entirely. So with caution, he quickly moved the bristles through the gray hair of the Keeper of Secrets then along her shoulder and upper arm keeping an eye on the gelfing. Maybe that was his first mistake, taking his eye off of the wise woman below his duster or perhaps it was touching her for suddenly the once still body sputtered awake, clouds of dust flying from her mouth. The podling stumbled back but it attempt at trying to move away proved futile for Aughra rolled over the side of the platform and right onto poor Mel. But just as quick as she was on him, she was off standing and gazing around with her one wide eye, the groan that escaped her mouth grating from lack of use. "Augh! Thra,what has happened to you?" Aughra turned, although not to acknowledge the podling who stood stunned before her. Fayra who had heard the commotion shifted to stand partially towards the basket and towards the sounds of activity, her eyes widened and the false chill of cold water set upon her skin. There, standing on her feet was Mother Aughra. The platform she laid on was devoid of her body. 

Mel sputtered out his surprise, resonating that Aughra had returned before throwing his hands around her abdomen- much to the hermits displeasure. "Unhand me! I do not need your help." The podling was shoved back, his head bowing at her harsh words. "Oh my goodness- you are _OLD!_ You were a childling when last I laid my eyes upon you." She rasped, gazing over Mel in astonishment. Mel tilted his head, looked to the ground then back up to Aughra to explain that he was not the podling he remembered but his grandfather. "Your _grandfather?_ " Her voice raised much like her brow, clearly shocked by the admission. Mel nodded humming his reply. "How long have I been gone this time?" The podling looked down at the ground thoughtfully, faintly counting using sounds from his throat before adverting his attention back to the hermit to relay that hundreds of trine had passed since she was last awake. "That _long?_ That's still not long enough to see the entire universe, I can tell you that! _Augh_ \- sending my mind, projecting my awareness through the stars is no easy feat. Not even for Aughra!" Groaning under the discomfort of her freshly awoken body, Aughra peered down at her legs in a huff. "These legs are asleep- _wake up!_ _wake up, legs!_ "

Mel watched her smack at her legs with the layered sleeves of her dress and shawl in hand, the faint sound seemed to kick start Fayra from her stupor. The gelfling turned a bit too quickly causing her hip to nudge into the table where the basket sat on the hazardously on the corner sending it and the contents inside onto the floor. The podling startled as did Aughra who turned at the sound, her one eye focusing on Fayra who stood among the spilled fruit and card games she had brought. Mel turned and offered to go get help much to the elder's displeasure. Aughra settled her focus onto the podling once more with a huff. "Get help? I am help! _Oh_ \- this pain, this awakening can only mean that some calamities befallen Thra while I was away. Aughra must find out.. what has happened and set things right, If I'm not too late!" Aughra trailed off, her eye searching the ground in thought while Mel turned his attention to the duster his hand. The hermit switched her gaze from the gelfing to the podling then back to the gelfing before settling it on the grandson of the original caretaker. "What are you waiting for?! Get my scrolls! _NOW!_ " Mel rushed off in a hurry leaving Aughra winded from the exertion she used to yell at him. Then she shifted to Fayra, brow low as she assessed the gelfing. It had been long since she last saw the bipedal race and could tell by the attire and stance of the gelfling that much had changed since her absence. "You! What is your clan, hm?" 

"Lipris-" 

Aughra 'hmphed' nearing the gelfling or rather the table behind her. "Lipris- Lipris- clan of the dunes bordering the Grasslands and the east of the Silver Seas. What of your Maudra?" Fayra hadn't a single clue where the inquiry of the hermit was going. "Maudra Lulav leads us, my mother..." The Keeper of Secrets hummed, swiping her hand across the table where the previously stacked books scattered across the surface none going as far over the edge. "Lulav was not the Maudra I last knew of- no, it was Nefeli." Her gray fingers danced across pages that flickered back and forth against her unseen will. The gelfling crossed her arms over her chest, eyeing the hermit. "That was my great great grandmother. Remember, Mother Aughra you have been gone for many trines- all that you knew last has cycled through new generations." The older woman huffed then hummed turning to look at the gelfling. "I may have been gone but do not mistake me for a fool, child!" 

"I am no child- My given name is Fayra." 

"I know who you are for Aughra know's all." She shifted to look back at the books and a silence much like the layers of dust settled between them that was until the hermit turned flailing her arms at the gelfling. "Why are you still standing here?! Inform your Maudra of my awakening! _Hurry!_ " Fayra stuttered in her steps as she moved on the whim by the order given to her but eventually found that this was indeed something that needed to be made haste of so her stumbling phased into a sprint and the sprint into flight. 

The heat of the sand dunes would have scorched the skin off the sole of any other's feet upon taking a step but the Lipris through trines of evolution had garnered thick skin on the pads of their feet that regulated the increase of heat that walking upon the sand felt like nothing but a comforted warmth. Fayra was brisk in her stride, sparing only a curt nod here and there from those of her clan, bakers, merchants, and coral divers. Within the sand dunes were hardened formations of sandstone that littered several seams where the compressed sand met the beach of the Silver Sea. The outcrop of sandstone served as entrances into the dunes where gelfings of the Lipris clan bustled about in their everyday tasks. The ground level was filled with small businesses usually selling goods from the sea or finds from the nearby Grasslands, hand crafted jewelry, woven fabrics made from compressed sand and seaweed and baked goods that filled the gentle suction of air with sweet and spicy aromas. At the far end of the small hidden city was a large tree, far bigger than any pine, oak or green top found in the Endless Forest. The bark was lovely tan, far darker than the copper's of the sandstone interior with green oval shaped leaves the color of the water in the shallows of the ocean, magenta fruit the size of a fist grew in bounty's year round and served as one of the main staples for the clan. The expanse of the evergreen was far to tall for the dune that it's tip had burst past the condensed sands, so the clan under the guidance of the then Maudra Nefeli built a dome with beach pebbles- it served as another entrance and exit but only under the use of a dire situation for taking it would mean climbing up or down the tree. 

Directly above the shops were where the homes were built directly into the sandstone, all uniquely crafted and designed to each families liking. Some painted the outer entrance wall with bright colors of the sun's rising while others took to taking corals sanded down and pasting them to the walls to form mosaics of the glittering ocean, the flutter of the Grasslands or the imposing hills of the Highlands. Near every entrance was two set of narrow staircases that served to connect the ground level to the mid level and the mid to the top where the teaching and healing temples were located as well the Maudra's family residence. Fayra knew Lulav would currently be in her healing temple teaching her class for the day so when she drew the mauve colored curtain aside to reveal her mother and four other gelfings surrounding a singing bowl which let out a low thrum from the mallet in the Maudra's hand. "Mother-" 

"I expect as much from your sister's, but at your age- not so much, my dear Fayra." Her voice was deep, calm and smooth as she peeled a single eyelid from one of her usually lidded eyes to acknowledge her daughter, her hand which held the mallet never stopping to encircle the rim of the bowl. The sound made the small hairs that graced Fayra's skin to prickle. "I have come to deliver a message," She glanced at the four students who seemed more intrigued by the 'princess' than their lesson causing the Maudra to now train both her eyes on her eldest daughter. "An urgent message." The gelfling finished stepping further into the temple. Maudra Lulav could see the stirring within her child's eyes so she dismissed her students with a wave of her hand, the group filing out with a hand to their chin's in thanks. "What is the urgent message that has you disturbing the sand, Fayra?" 

"Mother Aughra has awoken." Fayra watched her mother still her hand as she reached to place the mallet of the singing bowl into it's center, her eyes flickering up to gaze into her daughters. She knew she wouldn't tell her anything falsely but kids no matter the age were creatures that made a puddle seem like an ocean, taking that of a minor flinch as a sign that the dead has awaken. But swirling in her orbs was nothing of the sort- Mother Aughra had returned. 


	3. II

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "The answer will only arrive,  
> after we stop looking for it."
> 
> -Jonah Lehrer

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In this chapter I will be experimenting with different POV's- Aughra and Fayra for the most part with a small insertion from Mel. Let me know if I should continue doing this.
> 
> Updates will be every Friday starting Sep. 18.

**Mel**

It had been several days since the abrupt awakening of Mother Aughra, the hermit herself had spent day and night sifting through her parchments through her books and grumbling both high and low over the scrolls. Most of her musings were merely questions she would shout against the pregnant silence of the observatory all coming to startle Mel who was instructed to stay and fetch what she needed on a whim. The poor podling felt overworked, not that he truly worked a day in his life at the snail pace he dusted at. Needless to say, it was an _honor_ to be given the task of being the assistant to the highest being in all of Thra aside form the Mystics and Skeksis. To him, it was a fulfilling reward. So when the day came that he entered the dome of wonders to see it devoid of life, empty of scrolls, without a book in sight- the weight of her absence bore down heavily on his little shoulders. He was needed, wanted in a sense although in stride he was very much treated the same by his family but that was different. Here under Aughra's command he was important for his feet carried him to and fro, his hands and arms served to carry and his deliverance provided success. But now, gazing around in the cold of structure, the solar system at the center have gone still he knew his importance had come to a swift end. 

∘₊✧──────✧₊∘ 

**Fayra**

Fayra sat legs crossed within her mother's temple. Yesterday, she had ventured out to see Mother Aughra considering the last time she did was when the wise woman first arose from her hundred trine slumber. And was equally surprised to see the place devoid of the hermit but Mel the podling in her place. Coming to find after questioning her companion that he too had arrived just a few days prior to see the place in the same shape- empty. The gelfling frowned, dismissing the podling from his job only to be told that his bloodline remained loyal to Mother Aughra no matter if it was in spiritual or physical form- he would serve her in her absence no matter what. Then proceeded to hum a small tune and continue dusting. "You are troubled." It wasn't a question but a statement only provided from observation as Maudra Lulav glided about her sanctuary, her hooded eyes narrowed to look at her eldest child from over her shoulder. "Not troubled, just wanting of answers." Fayra replied without a beat, plucking the petals from a bundle of flowers grown near the ocean. Once crushed and stripped of their wax, the paste collected served as a lovely hair balm which smelled like a mixture of the ocean's breeze and floral musk. Many of the younger gelfling females tended to use it for attracting a love interest by placing the balm behind their ears and along the seem of their wings. It was a normal practice for the coming-of-age period, yet Fayra found no regard for it. "Hm, and what answers are you wanting to be provided with? Mother Aughra has returned, nothing is needed to be questioned there." 

Yet there was, she thought. 

Lulav collected a few jars along her trek around her temple, her daughter seemingly unfazed by what she assumed was her usual pacing. The Lipris Maudra paused, shifting her eyes from one container to the next. Bark Slime, Shell Dust, Sand Crab Claw- ah there it was. Fayra spared a glance from her tedious "labor" to took at her mother just as she reached up and forward to a particular jar filled with small orbs. Clam pearls were a rarity found only in the deepest caves bordering the Silver Sea guarded by beasts the Lipris called Creaton, massive creatures with gaping mouths filled to the very back with lacerated teeth and a pit of a gut. It's enlarged head and mouth was a stark contrast from it's small beady black eyes that paired in fours along the side of it's cranium. Two whiskers on each side of it's maw was armed with spindles that served one purpose- to impale. However the body was slender like an eel with thick tar like skin that flexed under the rumbles of it's temper. Two arms with webbed feet were the only thing which separated it from actually being an eel or perhaps a sea serpent. Now for the question of why were the pearls so important to the cave dwelling beasts to the point that they in rare cases attacked even their own to protect them, a very simple answer- the pearls were their eggs. Once retrieved from the depth's, the pressure of the ascent to the surface mixed with the density on land ultimately causes the shell to compact to the point that the fetus within it's hold is inevitably crushed. 

The whole process was unsettling but the objects were essential to the clan and the teachings of a healer. Lulav with the grace befitting of the clan Maudra plopped down across from her daughter onto one of many woven pillows she had thrown around her temple. Fayra tilted her head, with the concoction in her mother's arms she had an inkling that she would be at the receiving end of whatever scheme she had brewing. 

∘₊✧──────✧₊∘ 

**Aughra**

Aughra had no recollection of how many days it had been since her awakening or how many had come to pass on her sudden journey but what she did know is that once her one good eye befell upon the pink blossoms of the Sanctuary Tree, the ache that settled within her joints had all but vanished. Her breath came out in pleasing puffs as she fixed her relief onto the blooms just barely fluttering above her head. "Oh, Sanctuary Tree.." The hermit stepped forward, the movement nothing short from what she had tread beforehand. "We have not spoken in a long time." Her hand held comfort upon the rough surface of the gnarled root she had came to stand in front of, large and twisted just as the rest that spread above ground. " _Nor have we- Mother Aughra._ " From within the roots came deep voice as smooth and as gentle as the breeze that settled around the tree. Aughra shifted her gaze to the figure that emerged, a rather gruff sigh falling past her lips at the all-to-familiar being. "Archer, old friend." She greeted just as airily before perking up, her hands coming to rest upon her hips in a huff. "Why make me walk so far?!" 

"To bring you here." Was his sardonic reply, in truth he wasn't at all fazed by the woman's bearish nature in fact after all these trine in her absence- it was welcomed. "The you _know_ I do not need _trees_ you plodding pile! I need to find the song of Thra!" urVa furrowed his brow at the insult, watching his dear friend sigh in defeat. "But it's tune eludes me, has Thra gone quiet?" She inquired with a whisk of her hand. "No. Thra still sings." Came his calm reply. 

"Then why do I not hear _it_?" The Archer could tell by the wide illusion of her eye that the hermit was worried, her tone of voice as she questioned him only adding further to the emotion. "Because you turned your eye away from Thra, and towards the stars." The mystic lifted his head to face away from the woman's searching eye and to the high heavens above. "So many stars.. goes on and on." She whispered, thoughtful. "Like you and I. On and on." He turned his gaze from the sky to focus back on his dear friend, the breeze flickering between strands of his long graying hair. "Yes, perhaps too long.." The undertone of melancholy within her reply mirrored that of her expression. "We do not get to decide when our part in the song is finished." 

"I trusted the Skeksis to look after Thra! I took their word!" Aughra's voice rose under the realization that she, long ago, had been taken for a fool. "And their gifts.' urVa added, seemingly adding salt to her wound of shame. The hermit only hummed, rough and final. "You speak true, urVa. But now I have returned from my comic voyage to make things right, but I cannot guide destiny if I cannot hear the song!" The mystic fixed his gaze upon the other with knowing amber eyes, his large head bobbing slightly at her words. "That is why I am here." He soothed, slowly blinking. Aughra's single eye widened, hope just barely covering the iris as she peered down at him. "You'll teach it to me?" 

Yet for that hope, small in size, was crushed before it could flourish any further. "Oh no.." urVa cast his gaze to the side, the poorly concealed humor going unnoticed under the urgency of the hermit. "Well if not you then another Mystic!" He could tell she was beginning to get irate, her hands once again taking purchase on her hips. "The Mystics are hidden safely away until they are needed." Aughra stared him down, neither wavering from silent argument being pushed back and forth between their eyes. "They are needed _now_." She huffed, feeling her resolve slowly slipping away. "There is one who can help." urVa moved his staff forward with a harsh exhale as Aughra watched on quietly, questioning even. The Archer pulled the tassel at the bottom of the twine that wrapped around his staff till it was stretched to it's limit, the sound it emitted was to his ears- satisfying. The twine was then tied to the bottom in notch purposely crafted for such use, it was clear that the staff was no mere stick found on the ground but rather a bow. Giving a small groan, urVa reached over his head to his back where arrows laid in a hefty bundle within the quiver fastened around his figure. The Mystic notched the arrow with a grunt, his large fingers having no difficulty pulling the twine back as he faced the arrow upwards parallel to the elongation of his neck and head. 

Both watched as the arrow shot upwards with ease, piercing the air around them with the smallest shriek till it faltered, the sudden slow of force causing the arrow to turn and hurl back towards the earth where it hit the ground directly beside Aughra causing her head to jerk towards it's sudden appearance as well as the _disappearance_ of the Mystic. "Where did you- Archer! If you cannot show Aughra the song of Thra then who can?!" The woman paced around the arrow, searching between the roots of the tree and the expanse of ground around the area, sighing heavily once figuring he was truly gone. 

Then did she return to the arrow, "Arrow points to ground." Within her grip did the morsel uproot from the ground where her prying eye examined it's length. "Arrow points to... _Thra!_ " On further realization after her trained eye danced across the object in hand to the landing point it flawlessly hit did it dawn on her that the answer she sought was given- just beneath her nose. "Thra... Thra will teach, hm!" 

Aughra turned towards the valley, her voice rough. "You could have just said this! _Clearly_ , _succinctly_ , without all the walking!" She yelled into the air, to someone yet no one in particular yet knowingly wherever the big oaf had left to- he would hear her frustrations. 


	4. IV

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "There is such a thing as truth,  
> but we have a vested interest in not seeing it,  
> in avoiding it."
> 
> -Errol Morris

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Current Update: September 18.  
> Next Update: October 2.
> 
> Chapter POV: Aughra, Lulav and Fayra.
> 
> Note: I will not be writing everything that happens in the show, because let's be honest- that will get boring. However some scenes that I deem important will be written with added dialogue and just more fleshed out. There will be POV switches not between just my characters of those that are actually canon. Days to weeks will take place during certain plot points to give more insight and to allow the development of relationships and characters.

**Aughra**

Many many methods, many _useless_ methods! Nothing no matter what seemed to give Aughra what she sought. 

"Augh! Stones are no help." She grunted. 

Even mushing leaves, chewing and spitting them out into her palm as a soggy mass seemed even more pointless. "Leaves have nothing to say- _rah!_ No help!" 

Aughra wiped the back of her hand across the left side of her nose, upper lip and under her eye, the white powder that coated her skin smudged along those areas like war paint- poorly applied war paint. It tickled her nose much to her annoyance causing the hermit to bellow out a sneeze that scattered the powered she used to make the Master Time Spiral. "Dah! No help!" She sputtered, glaring pointedly at the symbol. But Aughra was not one to easily give up, no, if anything the trials of failure only fueled her forward. Candle's scattered around the dry-grass grounds, their flames flickering within the small shove of the breeze. Stones, twisted branches and moss shrouded the candles in a strange menagerie. In her hands burning smoke were two cloudy colored candles which she flicked with the force of her wrists, falling from her lips a shrew of huffs and mumbles. Turning, jerking, and fumbling in a circle to the beat of the drum that pounded beneath her aged skin, Aughra felt that she was close that she could almost hear the song of Thra but fell short when the smoke became to much causing her to cough and sputter suddenly. " _Bah!_ Smoke is no help... Mystic way's are no help, Aughra way's don't work, All way's don't work!" Her breath was labored, out of the frustrations that nothing seemed to summon the Song of Thra.

But perhaps underneath her nose was the answer. Not in the intricate stones she tossed upon the ground nor within the leaves she quietly whispered to but, further up, around her in the billowing petals and gnarled roots. Aughra stared, calculating each blossom that hung from each branch and each branch that connected to the singular body of bark and from the body came it's multiple enablers- roots. Perhaps.. there is a way, she thought surely to herself. With a deep breath, she eased her mind into a mere puddle of water. Still and tranquil, the flutter of the breeze guided strands of her hair across the aged skin on her cheeks yet she paid it no mind. The puddle, however now shifted into a stream- small and delicately flowing over river rock with the tiniest of sounds of lapping water brushing against her ears. It was there, flowing with the water did she feel it. 

The words she chanted fell like everyday chatter and into the breeze which startled, her staff beating upon the ground. If Thra did not wish to sing for her then it would sing for it's child who had befallen to the Darkness in her hands. She would not beg for forgiveness, for she was undeserving but the innocence of their worlds creations did not deserve the fate of death as did that one. No, it deserved to _live_! Her chanting grew louder in time with the bristling of the Sanctuary Tree, it's adorning petals flowing down around Aughra. The stream was now a river, endless in it's pursuit as it rushed further to the edge. The staffs worn bottom pounding in time to the thumping of her foot, to the beat of her heart and to the thrum of _THRA!_

∘₊✧──────✧₊∘ 

**Lulav**

"You know Kavan will find it rather pleasing if you did." Lulav took a low jab bringing up the Lipris clans best warrior but it was an effort for greater conversation. Fayra rolled her eyes, stuffing the last of the petals into the jar with vigor. If she knew her mother well, which she did, she knew the upcoming talk was something she wanted to entirely avoid- parents and talk of life mates was never a good mix in the pot. "Kavan would find anything _pleasing_ if it was meant to sway him." The older of the two pursed her lips, finding no humor in her daughter's terse reply. "I hardly think so, Fayra. Kavan would not take the seduction of another gelfing with his nose trailing your hide every step you take." Now it seemed the tabled were turned for pouting. Fayra sealed the jar's lid and with careful care moved the container aside with her bare toes so that she could properly lean back and stretch. "Well, when you put it like that mother," Lulav was quick to shoot her eldest fledgling a warning glare, just a small crease at the corners of her hooded eyes a small indication that she wished for her to not finish her sentence. "I would say you and father had chosen a perverted as my future mate!" Fayra couldn't help but bristle at the end of her syntax, openly glaring poison darts across to her mother. "Perversion? If I remember correctly, which in all cases- _I do_ , you were the one melting into a puddle of ocean water at the smallest of glances." 

Fayra couldn't help the incredulous laugh that fell past her lips, humor devoid of her expression. "You have gone absolutely senile, mother. Does father know that you've lost your mind?" 

The elder of the two seemed to take her daughter's attempt at a jab in stride, the teasing smile on her lips a small indicator that she found no harm in the latter's words. "Perhaps age has gotten the better of me or rather my _youth_ was sucked from my bones after having to raise three unruly childlings." Lulav moved as quick as a beam of light across to her daughter and with nimble fingers tugged at her ear lobes with a playful fondness. Fayra despised when she would do that as a child and even now as an adult she still found it just as irksome. Swiping at her mothers hands with renewed vigor, Lulav finally settled back into her seat with a gentle smile. "You will find your heart for him one day. Maybe not of the calm thrum of today or tomorrow among the rising tides but eventually you will find that love within yourself. For a puzzle is never finished if a single piece is missing." Her tone was soothing, calm and silky like warmed honey as she gazed at her daughter through hooded eyes. 

Maudra Lulav- ever so insightful and observant watched as Fayra's shoulders seemed to tense and her usually stoic eyes cracked away beneath her unease. Seeing such break in emotions was rare nowadays for the eldest princess of the Lipris carried herself with an unswayable disposition, a stark contrast to her youngling day's where she starved for adventure no matter how mundane it was- like sorting sand glass or laughed as loud as the thrum of the wind coursing through the nearby empty sandstone formations. Those days seemed endless now that Lulav dwelled on them, seeming to have come and gone right before her eyes as did the growth of her daughter. 

Perhaps she isn't as grown as we had thought, she mused inwardly. 

"I know that look- what are you pondering about? Surely nothing good..." Fayra narrowed her eyes at her mother who simply hummed, dumping the contents of a jar she had beside her knee into a wide mouthed bowl on the other side of her crossed legs. "Oh, just how many grandchildren I am expecting. I think seven would be a good number but ten is even better." Lulav stirred the boiling liquid with a slow hand, a tangy scented puff of purple smoke billowed up as the last of the ingredients from the gathered jars was poured in. Fayra scoffed, scrunching her nose in her mother's peripherals. "You have definitely lost it mother if you think I would be birthing ten childlings." Lulav dipped the lip of a smaller, more flat bowl used for drinking into the concoction with a deep resonating chuckle- one that was pleasing to the ears. "Then I suppose seven will be good enough." She teased much to her daughters continuing displeasure. Lulav knew the thought of rearing offspring frightened her eldest daughter, in fact, a couple years ago when the initially discussion of continuing the bloodline with a heir was brought up Fayra had lost all color from her tanned skin that she could have been mistaken for a Vapra if not for the naturally ingrained skin markings and coloring only belonging to the dune dwelling clan. 

"You do realize just _who_ will be birthing those childlings? If they are anything like how I was then I think you will be regretting those words." Fayra took pride in the barely concealed frown that spread across her mothers lips. Lulav could feel the phantom of stress rearing it's ugly head and for a moment she almost let slip her words of take back but settled instead to play into her daughter's attempt at making her eat her words, so to speak. "That is where Kavan comes in. His calm will hopefully rid the little beast's you had been filled with in your youth out of existence so the clan can rest easy." As much as any parent wanted to brag of how charming and obedient their childling is- Lulav and her husband Benaiah never was given that honor with their first born, far from it. Rambunctious, always into trouble, a bother to her parents at the crack of dawn to ask frivolous questions like _if fish had jobs like the baker or the tailor in the city did_ , loud as a horn and in a constant state of movement had been the curse of their household for many a trine. Perhaps it was a mild punishment for the trouble they had caused in their adolescent years, Lulav was sure Thra had a great laugh at their misfortune. However, kindness was paid back in tenfold when the twins were born. Both alike yet different was the relief of the Maudra and her husbands past woes- they were the childlings to speak highly of. 

Fayra let out a sigh both long and loud that it was easy to detect her rekindled worries. "Great, back to this boring discussion." Lulav also in these years of preparation for her eldest's bonding ceremony to her betrothed had taken a keen notice that she did not enjoy talking about the male gelfling. Of course like any mother and matriarch hoping for a fulfilling future for their child had inquired about a reasoning and it was simple- it made her nervous. Just like with children, lifemates were no different in making the eldest princess squirm uncomfortably. But that was only part of it, Fayra did not wish to hand off her freedom to become a sitting duck. To Lulav that statement alone was bizarre and only furthered her questioning. Did Fayra think that was to happen to her? Did she think that of her mother? Was becoming lifemates so horrible that their daughter fought her hardest to avoid the situation at all costs? The Lipris Maudra had pushed the questions for years and never was given a proper answer which in turn escalated into an argument, she was positive the whole clan was aware of the royal troubles when she caught wind of the sympathetic glances they sent her way every morning after. It was unlike the matriarch to easily anger, that was more of her husband's role, but her daughter's stubbornness had plucked enough of her nerves that blowing up like sand cannon was inevitable. 

"No, I will spare the rest of that talk for a different day preferably one where it is raining so you cannot fly off to the Grasslands." Lulav spared her daughter no amusement but rather her regular calm stare as Fayra gaped at her mother. "How did you-?" The matriarch dipped a finger into the bowl casually that rest just in front of her bare legs, the once simmering liquid now lukewarm from the longevity of their banter. Still, temperature would not affect it's effects. Lulav was careful in the grace of her hand as it balanced the bowl onto the tips of her four fingers so that they cradled the round shape of the bowl. "How could I not? You've always run there when upset even as a childling." 

Fayra didn't say anything, what was there to say? Her mother was right, she did seek comfort when met with conflicting emotions within the long strands of the tall grass. Lulav handed her daughter the bowl much to her confusion. "What is this?" 

"You said you wanted answers. This will give you them." Lulav waited patiently as Fayra took the bowl in her hands, glaring down at the contents. The eldest of two had to stop from chuckling at her daughters silent interrogation of the liquid. "Come now, it won't bite I promise." Despite her attempt at trying to acquiesce her, Fayra was not quick to take to her mother's word. "How would _this_ ," She shook her hand which held the bowl lightly, the liquid sloshing just a tad at her movements before easing when she stopped. "Know what answers I wish to be given? I do not doubt your shamanic abilities but even this is questionable." Lulav was prepared for the trepidation of her eldest, more so, that she simply burrowed her arms into opposing sleeves of her everyday garment with awaiting hooded eyes. "Drink it and you will find out." 

That was no argument nor reasoning probably because there was no means for one, The Maudra thought as she watched her daughter frown. 

Blame it being her mother or the fact that if she was going to off her child she would have done it before she was even formed within her womb but Fayra pushed aside her skepticism and tossed back the contents as if it was the sweet juice harvested from the fruits that grew on the tree prided by the clan. Lulav wished her daughter a safe journey wordlessly as she watched Fayra slump forward, her grip on the bowl relaxing till the object itself clattered to the temple floors. 

Now all she could do was wait. 

∘₊✧──────✧₊∘ 

**Fayra**

She should have known better than to accept the concoction from her mother without a single explanation of what it would do. Once her tongue lapped at the liquid she barely had time to try and fight the slipping of her unconsciousness, sending her mind into a downward spiral of vivid purples and fluorescent pinks. It was one thing to have a visual overload that you just could not blink away but to have your hearing maxed out to the volume of voices chanting, all unfamiliar to the female gelfling. Fayra promised that when she broke from the stronghold of this spiritual takeover she was sure to give her mother an earful that would last for many trines. The bursting of color seemed to accelerate in speed, now blues muddled together in the flashing array only to congeal then settle to reveal scenes more vivid and lifelike that she swore if she could reach out she would be able to touch the gelflings in them. 

Flying books, odd symbols, a female gelfling crying out with another's following after, a scuffle in the forest and the disgusting cackle belonging to one of many of Thra's oppressors. 

Fayra could feel herself screaming, hissing and cursing the vulture from her sight. If she could see how she felt, she was sure she would appear rabid with foam fizzling at the corner's of her mouth, eyes blown wide and erratic. But it was justified, she reasoned. If no gelfling truly felt this way towards the Skeksis whether it be shown or not then they were frauds- betrayers of their kin and **weak**. The tunnel seemed to shift, vibrating erratically all around in time to the broken repeat of the last word she thought- weak. That small and simple insult carried over the expanse in different tones, different voices, none of which were her's and the situation itself did not settle her mind but rather made her fear the backlash. It was a bit doltish- what repercussions would she face for speaking the truth? What could possibly happen to her here? She has no physical form, nothing to be harmed? And yet at her attempt to quell the gut-wrenching drop in her stomach did nothing, for the colors had vanished as did the voices and now she was left dropping in the pitch dark silence. 

Fayra had expected to be splattered like a bug once she hit whatever surface would be below her but rather she was on her feet, steady and confident standing in the middle of an unfamiliar stone corridor or maybe it was a tunnel of some sort. Looking down, the female gelfling let out a sigh of relief- her body was intact and _there_! For her to touch, to see and to feel- never did she wish to be rid of it again. Looking ahead down the narrow tunnel seemed to be not a single trace of light and looking back was no better. It was musky, humid even, probably from the lack of airflow and the dripping puddles of water that seemed to gather at certain areas along the floor one of which she was stepping in. "Oh that's just nice. Nothing better than soggy wet toes." Fayra mumbled, scowling down at the puddle as if it had spit upon her family's legacy. Giving a short wiggle of her foot to flick off most of the moisture, the female gelfling weighed her options in silence. Last she was present in her mother's temple, which held the obvious question of how was she here? It did not seem like a dream, no, the water was far too wet on her bare feet and the sticky air much too acrid against her skin. 

Yet she was, in the flesh- more or less, she supposed. 

Fayra crept forward along the wall, her finger tips skimming the rough surface of the stones. She prayed to Thra that whatever slime she had just touched was only that and not the contents of something that lurked in the dark's backside. Inwardly she grimaced at the thought. Fayra hadn't a single clue where she was going if anywhere considering the tunnels only grew longer and longer then branched off into other tunnels like a maze of slippery stone and suffocating air. That was of course until she passed by one of the forks where a voice seemed to echo from, and by the jitters in their voice they seemed nervous. Pausing just at the mouth of the entrance, she reached towards the back of her waist where she usually kept her trusted dagger but found that it and the holster it was kept in was nowhere to be found. "Just my luck.." She huffed quietly, the object of her searching was left in her private alcove since she wasn't needing it's use at the temple. 

I suppose hand-to-hand combat will do just as good of a job, she begrudgingly thought readying her hands into fists. 

But the voice had seemingly grown farther from her position and it dawned on her that they were not moving towards her but rather from her. If there was a small chance that they knew a way out then she was as good as gone. Moving hazardously and as quiet as possible to not alert of her presence nor scare whoever it was off, Fayra followed along the tunnels keeping just out of their line of sight. From what she could make out through the dim glow of the torches on the wall it seemed to be a male who had been blabbering anxiously to the other two who were with him. The tall one having shoved the male with a booming laugh only to be smacked by the other shorter figure, their voice a reprimand. Fayra was relieved to see that she wasn't alone, however, these were strangers and found no solace in being in their presence. Flooding at the end of the tunnel was bright light that almost made the female gelfling let out a hoot of relief if not for the decision of remaining undetected. The trio turned the corner and disappeared from sight and just as they did, across in the opposite tunnel appeared two more figures who followed with a few soft gasps. Fayra stayed back in the shadows till she was sure no one else was to suddenly appear and when it was clear that the last of the stragglers back made an appearance did she move to where the source of light was coming from. 

The last thing she was expecting to see was the Crystal of Truth in the center of the large room nor hear the gruff voice belonging to the one who inevitably led her here. 

" _ **Ah-ha! There's the rest of you.** _"__


End file.
